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Last Monday, during a combined address by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I raised a sign calling for the acknowledgment of Palestine. We were forcibly ejected from the legislative session, revealing the fragile state of what's frequently described as the "sole democracy in the region". How can leaders speak about Middle East peace while refusing to acknowledge a population deprived of fundamental liberties and rights under long-standing occupation?

The Situation in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more apparent than in the occupied West Bank. There, talk of reconciliation seem distant and weak, while the terrifying echoes of colonist attacks and intimidation persist loudly. More than 30 incidents of settler aggression against Palestinians have been documented since the unveiling of the US peace proposal in September's end, including attacks, stealing of agricultural produce, and burning of cars and property.

Targeted Violence During Harvest Season

The increase in settler terrorism is deliberate. This period signals the start of agricultural harvesting. More than a crucial economic activity, it constitutes an significant social and national moment that shows endurance under occupation. Precisely for these causes, annually settlers target Palestinian farmers throughout this crucial period. During the last year's agricultural period, human rights organizations recorded 113 distinct incidents of aggression, intimidation, harvest-thwarting, or destruction to olive trees and produce involving settlers and soldiers, which occurred on lands owned by 51 Palestinian-owned villages, towns, and communities.

Israeli security forces appeared to have had a greater part in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also discovered that "Israeli security forces seemed to have had a greater part in obstructing the olive harvest". In approximately 70% of cases where access to lands was forcibly blocked, soldiers, border guards, and settlement security officials were actually on site. They either directly prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching and harvesting their property, or failed to prevent settlers who harassed or assaulted them.

Political Backing for Settler Activities

This is no surprise, as the head of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an additional minister in the Defense Ministry in charge of the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for instance, a special COGAT unit uprooted personally-owned olive plants of Palestinians, claiming missing documentation, but overlooked infractions by an illegal nearby colonist encampment. Last week, the local court decided to stop all construction in the encampment, which was constructed on lands seized by Israeli authorities and illegally given to settlers.

Annexation Ambitions and International Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a instrument used by the government to achieve de-facto incorporation. Earlier this month, Smotrich led a procession of many of colonists in support of annexation the West Bank. He was quoted as saying, "We persist to take hold with our feet of the territory with many settlers, many heroes, and countless of settlers who live in this area of the land ... we need to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The colonists and their supporters in the parliament are clear about their motives and goals. Why, then, do government officials in the Western nations hesitate from meaningful penalties and political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in the summer, but the impact of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be able to travel to the United Kingdom and visit the London's entertainment district, but he still maintains the ministerial power to take territories in the West Bank. Remarkably in the announcement of sanctions, the UK emphasized they apply "personally" solely.

Global Recognition and Actual Situation

If the UK government recognizes the truth of colonist aggression and its serious implications on Palestinian life, why does it still allow goods from settlements to be marketed in stores and outlets in Britain? If the British leader is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a sovereign entity, how come he permit the Israeli administration to violate its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the acknowledgment an empty ploy to shut down opposition in the United Kingdom, a meaningless act only to be realised in the relabeling of some maps?

Pathway to Genuine Peace

A just resolution must respect the basic entitlements of the Palestinian people for self-determination, sovereignty, and liberty from military occupation and blockade. Only when each person's dignity between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea is respected can we genuinely declare peace has been achieved.

True resolution requires an sovereign Palestinian state alongside the Israeli state: this is the sole solution that has agreement among the global community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace camp.

The former US president may have applied pressure on Netanyahu to stop the genocide, but he likely only did so because the strain of his connection with the isolated government of the Israeli PM had become excessive. The large demonstrations across the world for the freedom of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering opposition protests inside the country, are the real forces behind this pressure.

It is due to this massive civil movement that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages released, and the people of Gaza can experience safeguard from annihilation. Following the ceasefire agreement has been finalized, it is vital to keep applying this pressure. The world has ignored to the violence in the strip for too long; it must not repeat the same error in the West Bank.